Justin RoseHis smooth swing has already propelled him to a PGA Tour win this season at Open Farmers Insurance. While his success has been built on meticulous preparation and elite athleticism, much of his consistency comes down to fine-tuned technical instruction under his coach. GOLF Top 100 Teachers Mark Blackburn.
While fans rarely get a glimpse into the inner workings of a coach-player relationship, a recent interview on the Smylie Show offered a fascinating look behind the curtain.
Main focus on Rose’s swing
According to Blackburn, one of the most important elements in Rose’s swing is his right leg — especially his knee during the downswing.
“One of the things that Rosie likes to feel as a player is that she likes to be quite passive through impact,” says Blackburn. “So he has a tendency sometimes for his right knee and right leg to work a little bit too much inwards towards the ball, which then leaves his body leaning back a little bit and then he has to straighten his arms.”
Together, Blackburn and Rose focus on getting his trailing knee to track more towards his leading knee during the downswing. By keeping his right knee moving toward the target (instead of falling toward the ground) Blackburn says Rose can stay centered and turn through the shot.
“He (Rose) wants to have a lot of spin in his golf swing, that’s what he likes to feel,” Blackburn says. “His ‘bad golf’ is played with a lot of sliding and tilting and throwing the arm out.”
Blackburn continues, explaining that Rose’s best golf is played when he has a little more depth in his backswing while staying focused.
“Then he kind of sits down, swings the club forward but the sweet spot behind him, then comes back,” he says.
Rose’s trusted training aid, explained
To reinforce this focused and controlled swing, Blackburn has attached Rose a Smart ball just above his knee. The simple device encourages the leg to move correctly towards the lead knee while giving Rose a clear signal that she can feel and see. If his trail foot moves toward the ground instead of the target, his hands are likely to catch the ball—providing him with immediate feedback.
What’s even more impressive is that Rose and Blackburn added this workout just a week before he won the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines.
“We threw that in this week,” Blackburn says, “He (Rose) likes it (the drill) because then it allows him to reflex or cover the golf ball and be pretty passive during the swing.”
“And obviously that’s definitely indicative of the way he played this week. A lot of straight lasers, but that’s how he likes to play. He likes to take shots straight down left. Um and it just allows him to do that,” he says.
For Rose, it’s clear that a great swing comes down to small details that cause a chain reaction of better swing. By training his trail foot to move correctly, he stays centered, spins efficiently, and hits with precision and power. It’s a reminder that sometimes all it takes is a little tweaking, focused work and the right training to turn those sensations into repeatable results.
